Cassandra
'''Evanlyn, also known as Cassandra, is princess royal of Araluen, daughter of King Duncan, and the only heir to the throne of Araluen. In the Burning Bridge, she invents the alias Evanlyn protect herself from Morgarath and his army of Wargals. She is known to her father as "Cassie".' History Cassandra is daughter of King Duncan and heir to the throne of Araluen, her mother dying when she was little and having left her no brothers or sisters. She is a strong-willed, courageous character, proving her worth through out the course of the series. In ''The Burning Bridge she appears for the first time and is captured by Skandians who then take her as a slave along with Will. In the Icebound Land she manages to escape from a life of slavery and finally, in The Battle for Skandia she returns home to Araluen after helping witht he signing of the Hallasholm Treaty. During the course of Erak's Ransom she takes on her role as Royal Princess to a greater level, helping talk through the ransom for Erak and then in the Emperor of Nihon-Ja travels to Nihon-Ja to find out what happened to Horace. The two are then engaged at the end of the book. The Burning Bridge She first appears in The Burning Bridge. Cassandra created the alias Evanlyn after her red-haired maid (now deceased) was brutally murdered when she was visiting Princess Madelydd of Celtica during the war between Morgarath and Araluen. Her escort held off attacking Wargals while she escaped. Later, she found Ranger Gilan with apprentices Will and Horace, and traveled with them without revealing her true identity. Soon after, she and Will were captured by Skandians: Erak Starfollower and his wolfship's crew just as they had burned the bridge which lay over the Fissure and had been built by Celtic miners who were enslaved by Morgarath's Wargals. The Icebound Land During her and Will's stay on Skorghijl after they were captured, she developed a close relationship with him but occasionally became annoyed. Evanlyn told Will her true identity which stunned him, after which she proudly informed him that they could be ransomed by the King, but their hopes of freedom were dashed when Slagor's ship, Wolf Fang, ''arrives at the island and he tells Erak that Oberjarl Ragnak has made a Vallasvow against King Duncan and his family. This meant that if Evanlyn's identity was discovered she would be killed ruthlessly. After they were taken back to Skandia, the two were given as slaves to the Skandian Great Hall, Evanlyn a kitchen slave and Will a yard slave. As a slave, Will suffers greatly and takes warmweed. Erak pities them and gave them a pony, and with that, helped both of them escape. On the way, she nurses Will back to health after he becomes addicted to warmweed, a treacherous drug, and takes them to a cabin in the midst of the snowy forest. At the end of the book she spots a Temujai warrior in the forest but doesn't realize who he is. She arrives back at the cabin to find Will recovered from his addiction to her absolute and ultimate delight and relief. The Battle for Skandia In the fourth book she and Will are staying up in the cabin in the mountains and spring is fast approaching; this means their future is uncertain because if any Skandians happen to come hunting and find the cabin the two will be taken back in to captivity. While hunting in the forest Cassandra is attacked and captured by a Temujai and taken back to a scouting parties camp. After arguing, the Temujai decide to kill her. One of the soldiers approach with his sword to do so but is suddenly hit by an arrow which Will has shot from a hunting bow back at the cabin. Will had tracked Evanlyn after she hadn't come back to the cabin. One of soldiers tries again to kill her but out of nowhere come Horace and Halt, both of them quickly dispatching the group of Temujai and rescuing them. She later takes an active part in the battle against the Temujai, helping Will and Horace with directing the archers. After Ragnak dies the Vallasvow is lifted against her leaving her free to reveal her true identity with no fear of being killed. Erak's Ransom Evanlyn is a key character in ''Erak's Ransom, being one of the Araluens chosen to deliver the money for Erak to be set free. Her true skill is with a sling which is revealed in this book, along with her knowledge in politics. She manages in unmasking the man who claims to be a Wakir (a leader of an area) to be a normal accountant. During the execution, she bravely stood up to the executioner with Horace, and in the conflict afterward, she was able to take out Toshak's horse using her sling-belt and a marble from her necklace. This eventually leads to Erak defeating and killing him. She also injured many of the Tualaghi soldiers during the fighting with her sling, including Yusal, the leader of the Tualaghi, giving him a memory loss and reducing him to a "drooling idiot", which she has some misgivings about. The Emperor of Nihon-Ja Evanlyn plays a major role in the tenth book. She, with the company of Will, Alyss, Halt, and Selethen, travel to Nihon-Ja. She befriends Emperor Shigeru, and wants to help in the fight against the uprising. Cassandra and Alyss devise a plan to help their friends: travel in a kayak, from the fortress they reside in over the great lake towards the land of the Hasanu, to ask them for help in the battle. The Hasanu want to help, but they do not manage to because of their superstition; they believe there are evil spirits in the forest surrounding the great lake. Alyss and Cassandra go into the forest to hunt these so called "spirits". They find instead a large Snow Tiger, which was supposed to have left those regions years prior. The snow tiger, or Kyofu (The Terror), is killed by a stab wound inflicted by Alyss and being hit by three sling missiles shot by Cassandra. After travelling with Alyss and overcoming their rivalry, they become good friends. Toward the end of the book, Horace proposes to Evanlyn. They plan to marry as soon as they return to Araluen. The Lost Stories 'The Bridal Dance ' In The Bridal Dance, she is married to Horace. Her life is threatened by two Genovesan assassins, Will and Nils Ropehander save her life. Shigeru takes on the title of Patron-Sponser for the wedding and gives the two a place in Nihon-Ja which coincidently lies close to his Summer Palace. The two quickly agree to give any profit gained from the castle and it's surrounding land to the people who have lost loved ones or been injured during the war against Arisaka. She later thanks Will and gives him a kiss on the cheek, Alyss smiles quietly to herself at this, realizing how far the two girls' relationship towards one another has progressed. 'And About Time Too...' It is later revealed in the story of Will and Alyss' wedding (And About Time Too . . .) that she and Horace are expecting a child, though it is not revealed what gender the child will be. At the wedding she is the Maid of Honour and takes her place behind Alyss at the wedding whilst Horace acts as the best man. Description Cassandra has gold-blond hair and is described as being "tomboyish", slim and not very tall as opposed to Alyss. She is in quite good physical condition as well, having led an active life and keeping fairly fit. Personality She is very determined, which also leads to her being stubborn; her and her father sometimes clash, neither willing to give way. Cassandra is also quite versatile and able to improvise. Though in earlier books her relatively sheltered upbringing caused her to act like a bit of a spoiled child, she soon overcame that. Talents *'Slinging - '''In ''the Icebound Land Evanlyn teaches herself to use the sling. She used to practice it as a child with her cousins but stopped using it after she had to start learning the skills of a princess instead of running wild. Evanlyn continues to use it throughout the course of the next few books until she is very skilled and accurate. *'Fencing - '''Cassandra can be lacking in coordination and technique when it comes to fighting with a sabre as shown ''the Emperor of Nihon-Ja, but she does make up for it in enthusiasm. *'Negotiating - '''during Erak's Ransom, Cassandra displayed a talent for negotiating, and retaining a clear mind in situations where other might have become confused. *'Needlework- As a princess, Cassandra found it neccesary to learn needlework (even if she didn't want to). She puts this to good use in the Emperor of Nihon-Ja, using her talent to adapt to various situations she finds herself in. Relationships *Horace Altman '- In ''the Burning Bridge the two become good friends, Horace admiring the princess and she in turn admiring him. Their relationship deepens when they return to Araluen. Horace sees a lot of the princess, having been posted at Castle Araluen, and she in turns sees a lot of him. Somewhere along the line the two fell in love and in the Emperor of Nihon-Ja Horace proposes to Cassandra who promptly accepts. In the Lost Stories it is revealed that Cassandra is going to have a baby. *'Will Treaty - '''She becomes very close to Will throughout the course of the Icebound Land and seems to fall in love with him, but later she realises that he doesn't love her the way she loves him and instead falls in love with Horace. Her relationship with Will is like that of a brother and sister. *'Alyss Mainwaring' - She and Alyss have a rather prickly relationship initially. Alyss worried that the princess may be in love with her boyfriend (Will). This is finally resolved in ''the Emperor of Nihon-Ja and the two become close friends. *'King Duncan - '''She and her father are very close and he is proud of her daughter for all she has accomplished. The two often clash, though, having slightly stubborn and fiery temperaments. In ''Erak's Ransom, the two collide a few times, as Cassandra tries to develop her talents so one day she can be a queen her father will be proud of. Other Names *''Evanlyn ''- the name of her servant, who was also a good friend. Cassandra assumed the name Evanlyn in the Burning Bridge to avoid capture because of her status as Crown Princess; later both Horace and Will get into the habit of calling her that name after referring to her as Evanlyn for so long. She still uses the alias when travelling incognito. Category:Females Category:Humans Category:Characters Category:Protagonists Category:Royalty Category:The Burning Bridge characters Category:The Icebound Land characters Category:The Battle for Skandia characters Category:Erak's Ransom characters Category:The Emperor of Nihon-Ja Characters Category:The Lost Stories Characters Category:The Bridal Dance Characters Category:And About Time, Too... 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